Live in a market with a non-NBCUniversal owned station and want to watch it via an app or on a smartphone?
You’ll soon have the ability to do so, thanks to a big evolutionary step set to transpire on the Peacock platform.
There’s a caveat: Peacock Premium Plus subscribers as of November 30 will have access to their local NBC affiliate, thanks to a new arrangement between the affiliate owners and the network.
Why not simply give it to local viewers on Peacock at no charge? Retransmission consent fees are likely at play, as NBC does not own the local content viewers in a market such as Buffalo, Phoenix or Orlando see, for example.
In prepared comments, NBCUniversal President of Peacock and Direct-to-Consumer Kelly Campbell said, “NBC affiliates have long been an integral part of local communities, and we look forward to being another point of connection and engagement for those communities around the country.”
NBC Affiliate Relations President Philip Martzolf added, “This is an exciting new offering that expands our best-in-class broadcast and local programming to new stations.”
To be clear, affiliate stations will be geotargeted. For instance, a Peacock Premium Plus user in Vero Beach, Fla., will receive The E.W. Scripps Co.’s WPTV-5 in West Palm Beach. Up the road in Viera, Fla., the user will receive Hearst Television’s WESH-2 in Orlando.
Eric Meyrowitz, EVP of Hearst Television and Chair of the NBC Affiliates Board, commented, “This partnership elevates our commitment to our audiences by giving them another place to receive our local and NBC broadcast programming.”
While November 30 is the official launch date, some Premium Plus subscribers will have access to their local NBC affiliate as early as today (11/8).
